A Frosty Reunion
by SPB
Summary: On Christmas Eve night, an elderly Karen stays up until practically midnight, awaiting the arrival of an old friend. And when Frosty arrives, he and Karen will have a special reunion.


"I'll be back again someday!" Those simple little words had meant so much to her. Over the years, her friend had always kept his word, returning every year with the Christmas snow and staying until the day after Christmas.

Even as the years had gone by, Karen never lost faith. One by one, all of her friends "grew up" and came to believe that they'd just imagined their memories of that talking snowman. Never mind the fact that he'd shown up year after year. Some of them mocked Karen for still believing, even into high school and beyond. But she didn't mind, she knew that Frosty was as real as real could be.

And so it was that the now much older Karen was waiting patiently on the night before Christmas, for the return of the one friend she'd held more dear to her heart than any other. The friend who she'd never grown apart from due to age or location. It didn't matter when she could no longer come back to her old home in that cozy little town. Thanks to Santa, Frosty knew just where to find Karen, and made it a yearly ritual to come and see her every Christmas Eve night.

The elderly Karen looked up at the clock, it was a quarter to midnight. Her husband had already turned in for the night (though not before slipping his present to his wife under the tree, when he thought Karen wasn't looking), as had her children. It was a shame that none of them wanted to stay awake, she was certain that her kids would love Frosty. Jack, with his golden locks and beautiful brown eyes, would surely be asking questions. And little June, her red bangs wouldn't hide her sweet blue eyes, which would be all aglow when she got a good look at the talking snowman himself. And Max, well he wouldn't know what to say, he might even faint. It was funny to think that the very son of Professor Hankel, didn't believe in magic, despite following his father's footsteps.

On the subject of Hankel, Karen's thoughts briefly turned to the old magician. Last she'd heard from him, he was living out his twilight years in Vegas. Age hadn't stopped him from delighting folks the world over with his talents, when they weren't busy laughing at the stories he told about "the time my old hat brought a snowman to life". It was nice to know that at least one other person still believed.

Looking out the window of the ground floor living room, Karen could see nothing but snow and Christmas lights as far as the eye could see. But there was no sleigh, no sound of reindeer prancing or feet thumpity-thump-thumping through the snow, not even a cry of "Merry Christmas!" or "Happy Birthday!" that would've signaled the arrival of Frosty. The old woman sighed. " _I know you're out there, Frosty. I know you're busy with your snow family. If you couldn't make it out this year, I understand._ " She thought to herself, and turned off the light as she prepared to go to bed.

* * *

But just then, there came the distant sound of tiny little hooves prancing down on the rooftop. Karen's eyes lit up! Could it be?!

Quickly slipping on her hat, coat, gloves, boots, and scarf, Karen was out the door in a flash! And as soon as she was out there in the snow and the cold, she saw him! That familiar corn-cob pipe and old, silk hat that had first brought him to life all those years ago! "Frosty!" She exclaimed, rushing forward and embracing the snowman in a hug! A mistake, as the snow he was made of brushed against her coat and made her shiver. She began to cough.

"Goodness, Karen, are you feeling okay?" Frosty asked his old friend. The years had mostly been kind to her, as even now she still retained her blonde hair and her eyesight remained about as sharp as it could be in her advanced age.

"I'm fine, Frosty, I've just been feeling a little under the weather lately," Karen honestly replied. "Nothing a little medicine and bed rest can't fix. No way was I going to miss this chance to see you again, my old friend. I've missed you so much."

"And I've missed you, Karen," Frosty smiled. "Sorry I can't stay for long, Santa's running a little behind schedule if you couldn't tell. And without him, there's no way I could make it back to the North Pole before I melted."

"That's okay, just seeing you again is enough to make my Christmas," Karen told the snowman. "It's a shame you can't come inside, even just for a minute. I'd love for you to meet my family, especially my kids. June's turning five next month, and Jack's going into junior high next Fall."

"Karen, you know as much as I do that I'd melt if I went inside," Frosty lightly remarked. "Had it not for been Santa, I'd have never gotten out of that greenhouse all those Christmases ago," He quickly changed the subject. "I sure wish I could take you up to the North Pole with me, just for one day. You'd get to meet Mrs. Claus, Rudolph, and all the other wonderful friends I've made up there."

Karen coughed a bit more, the cold wind was getting to her. "Not to mention Crystal, Nilly, and Chilly," She added with a smile. "I'm sorry I wasn't there to meet Crystal, I was sick in bed for most of Christmas, and after that my mom only let me walk to school and back. Guess that's what I got for not being home for supper on our first Christmas together. It was worth it to help you though, Frosty." Then she started to cough some more.

* * *

It was at that moment, that Frosty made up his mind. He reached down and began to pack several balls worth of snow, then he patted them onto himself, before he reached down and scooped up Karen, carrying her inside.

"Frosty? What are you doing? You'll melt!" Karen commented with concern. "I'm fine, really."

Frosty shook his head, he was anything but convinced. "You need to rest, that cough of yours sounds pretty bad," He told Karen. "And I wouldn't worry too much, I put on some extra snow just for such an emergency. Snow Miser and Jack Frost taught me. Christmas snow is the most magical snow there is, you know." He quickly set Karen down on the living room sofa, and wrapped the blankets around her.

"Thank you, Frosty. Merry Christmas." Karen softly called, as the warmth spread to her body.

"Merry Christmas to you too, Karen," Frosty smiled back, before he exited the house a moment later. Santa was already outside, waiting for him. "Sorry if I kept you waiting, Mr. Claus." He apologized.

But Santa just laughed in that jolly voice of his. "Nonsense, Frosty, you were visiting an old friend. It was the perfect distraction for me. For what good is a Christmas present if you know what you're getting? Besides, with Rudolph at the head of the team, we can easily make up for lost time. Now come on, we'd best get going. Those stockings aren't going to fill themselves you know." And he whistled for his sleigh, and the nine reindeer pulling it.

Frosty climbed into the back of the sleigh, and when Santa cracked the whip just a few seconds later, he watched as Karen's house quickly disappeared from view. " _Of all the Christmases we've spent together, Karen, this one has to be one of our all time best,_ " He thought, before he got a good look at himself. It was now that he noticed he'd packed a little too much snow for what had been a very brief venture inside. " _Oh well, I can always get Heat Miser to melt it off. I just hope he and Snow Miser are still getting along._ "

* * *

(In loving memory of June Foray: 1917-2017. R.I.P)


End file.
